News

Sega & Sonic All-Stars Racing: Shenmue's Ryo Hazuki Represents

Sega reveals the iconic character will be playable in its new kart racer.

According to Sega, Shenmue's hero Ryo Hazuki is one of the most requested characters for revival, so today's news of his appearance in Sega & Sonic All-Stars Racing is surely welcomed.

It'll be Ryo's first playable role in a game since the conclusion of Shenmue 2 on the Dreamcast. Check out what he brings to the race:

Ryo, protagonist of the Shenmue series and one of the most requested SEGA character to make an appearance in All-Stars Racing will be riding his borrowed motorcycle around classic SEGA themed race tracks. And when a motorcycle just can't cut it, Ryo unleashes his All-Star move and is able to swap vehicles to his iconic forklift to charge and barge opponents out of the way!

The Shenmue series, the story of a son's quest for vengeance, began life in 1999 as the killer-app for the SEGA Dreamcast. Originally developed by the legendary Yu Suzuki for SEGA, Ryo has yet to gain his revenge but he's certainly no stranger to motorcycle racing and is sure to make a formidable adversary for Sonic, AiAi, Dr. Eggman and the other All-Stars.

The game is currently expected to hit Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii sometime in spring 2010.

Anyone for 8,000 cans of soda pop? Click for more.

Bryn says: It's been so long since I clapped eyes on Ryo that at first I thought he was Akira from Virtua Fighter! But now that I think about it, this is a great nod to Sega fans. The Shenmue titles were watershed moments, so why not revive Mr. Hazuki.

Let's just hope that Sega & Sonic All-Stars Racing is up to snuff when it finally arrives.